Chapter 174 Even the Almighty is New to Being a Dad Chapter 175
Absolute Dad 175
The next morning.
"Ahem, hmm."
Bong-gu, dressed in an unusually neat suit, adjusted his appearance while checking his reflection in a store window before leaving the house.
"Ready?"
At Kang-jun's question, Bong-gu gave a short "Yes," then continued with a voice full of determination.
"Hyung-nim, I'm off."
Kang-jun, gently patting Seol's bottom as he held her in his arms, casually replied.
"Alright, make sure you come back smiling."
How much time had passed?
Ding-a-ling—
The bell on the café door chimed...
"Welcome!"
Bong-gu strode confidently toward the counter.
"Hello!"
"Yes, may I take your—"
"No, actually..."
Bong-gu immediately pulled out a carefully handwritten letter from his inner pocket and handed it over.
Every single character was written with sincerity, and he hadn't forgotten to include his contact details at the end.
"I'll be waiting for your call."
With those words, Bong-gu turned to leave without looking back—but just as he was about to step outside...
"Um, I'm sorry..."
"Huh?"
"It's... a bit overwhelming."
At that, Bong-gu began rambling nervously.
"Could you just... give me one chance?"
"Huh?"
"How about a quick drink in the evening...?"
She answered immediately.
"I don't like alcohol."
"Oh..."
"Yeah, I don't even touch it."
Bong-gu cautiously pressed further.
"By the way, you don't look too good today..."
"Yeah, I drank too much last night, so I have a bad hangover."
Bong-gu blinked. "Huh?"
She had just said she didn't even touch alcohol...
"Then, how about a simple meal...?"
"Actually, I have a rice allergy, so I can't eat it."
Bong-gu muttered under his breath, "A rice allergy, huh..." before carefully asking again.
"Then, maybe a movie sometime when you're free?"
"I've seen it."
"You don't even know which movie I was going to suggest..."
Bong-gu, his words trailing off, tried again.
"Then, maybe your phone number...?"
"I don't use a phone."
"You... don't use a phone at all?"
"Nope. 'Minimalism,' you could say."
Just then, a ringtone sounded from her pocket...
"Hey, I'll call you later."
After hanging up, she turned back to Bong-gu.
"Anyway, I can't accept the letter."
Bong-gu realized.
'Ah... I got rejected.'
He nodded once, then spoke carefully.
"Right... my apologies..."
Taking back his letter, Bong-gu trudged out of the café with heavy steps...
"Unnie, wasn't that too harsh?"
Another part-timer, who had been silently watching the exchange, cautiously asked. The girl replied firmly.
"He's just not my type. What can I do?"
"But still, considering the effort..."
"It'd just be giving him false hope."
Bong-gu simply wasn't her type.
"So, how'd it go?"
At Kang-jun's question, Bong-gu answered.
"Hyung-nim."
A brief silence hung in the air.
"My heart... it hurts."
"Ah..."
"Could this be... love?"
His voice sounded like he had lost the entire world.
"What? What did she say?"
"That she felt... overwhelmed..."
"Did you at least ask her out for a drink?"
Bong-gu replied.
"She said she doesn't even touch alcohol."
"Really?"
"But then she said she had a bad hangover."
Kang-jun immediately followed up.
"Then what about a meal—"
"She doesn't like rice."
"A movie, maybe—"
"She's already seen everything."
"Then at least her number—"
"She doesn't use a phone."
Kang-jun smacked his own forehead with a loud thwack and muttered.
"Damn, you got wrecked."
"I know..."
"Totally wrecked."
"I know..."
Bong-gu then asked, voice hollow.
"Hyung-nim... what is love, really?"
"Love?"
"Seol-ah, what is love?"
Before Bong-gu could even wait for an answer, he staggered away unsteadily.
"Hey, Bong-gu. Bong-gu."
"Yeah, Hyung-nim."
"What do you wanna do?"
Kang-jun asked again.
"Wanna open Pandora's box?"
"What do you—"
"Should I send Devard to check?"
Bong-gu hesitated.
"If Devard-nim steps in..."
They could confirm whether she had personal reasons for rejecting him or if she simply didn't like Bong-gu.
But...
If she reacted completely differently to Devard, the self-loathing he'd feel would be unbearable.
"No... it's fine..."
Muttering, "What is love...?" Bong-gu stumbled weakly around the corner and disappeared.
"I'm curious."
Kang-jun, silently watching him leave, gently patted Seol's bottom before turning to Devard.
"Hey, Devard."
"Yes, my lord."
"You go."
The order came from Kang-jun's curiosity about why Bong-gu had been rejected so harshly.
'Maybe she really has personal reasons for not wanting to date...'
Devard immediately stepped into the café...
And emerged not long after.
"Devard, how'd it go?"
"I got her number."
"But she said she doesn't use a phone..."
Kang-jun pressed further.
"What the hell did you even say...?"
"I asked for it."
"And she just gave it to you?"
"Wrote it down immediately."
Devard continued.
"She suggested watching a movie, having a meal, and even a drink on her day off."
"But she said she's seen all movies, has a rice allergy, and hates alcohol!"
Now it was clear.
The problem was...
Bong-gu.
At the same time.
"Hmm..."
Director Seo Do-cheol of the Awakened and Gate Management Bureau wore an endlessly grave expression as he scrutinized the report he had just received.
- Report on Aberrant Gates -
Recently, there had been an increasing number of "Aberrant Gates" that exhibited violent instability and spiked in danger levels after suppression teams entered.
Just this month alone, several cases had already occurred, and the frequency seemed to be rising over time.
"Tch..."
As he read, the final line of the report caught his eye.
- Based on this, our research team concludes that a certain group or organization is artificially creating these Aberrant Gates.
The chaotic puzzle pieces in his mind began falling into place.
"Gate instability..."
His fingers tapped the desk.
"Aberrant Gates..."
Tap, tap—soft but deliberate.
"A secretive religious group aiming for the world's destruction..."
He muttered again.
"The Cult of the Evil God..."
It was clear that those lurking in the shadows were plotting something dangerous.
"What even is love...?"
Bong-gu, heavily drunk, kept muttering with his head hung low.
"What is it about love that makes my heart hurt like this?"
At this, Jeong Pil-sang, the owner of North Sea Udon, asked with concern.
"Kang-jun, don't you think your friend has had enough...?"
Kang-jun shrugged and replied.
"He'll stop when he's had enough..."
Bong-gu had already downed several bottles of soju with a single bowl of udon as a side dish.
"What even is love..."
At this, Baal, who had been meticulously wiping dishes with a dry cloth, suddenly cut in.
"If it's bothering you that much, why not just grab her by the throat and threaten her?"
"Huh?"
"If you can't have her, break her!"
Kang-jun frowned and scolded.
"Hey, the kid's listening."
"My bad."
"Watch your damn mouth."
Seol was sitting at the next table, clumsily picking at her udon with chopsticks.
"And why the hell do you talk like that?"
"Problem?"
"Why's your speech pattern like that?"
"Not informal speech."
After Kang-jun had threatened Baal—"One more informal word and I'll kill you"—his way of speaking had become bizarre.
It was like...
A shred of pride made him avoid both informal and formal speech, settling for an awkward, grating middle ground.
"Speaking as politely as possible."
"......"
"Never satisfied, huh?"
When Kang-jun set down his chopsticks and glared, Baal quickly ducked into the kitchen.
"Gotta check inventory..."
Just then, Bong-gu sniffled and asked Jeong Pil-sang again.
"Boss... what is love?"
Jeong Pil-sang answered after a pause.
"Well..."
Choosing his words carefully, he explained his thoughts on the definition of love.
"I think love is... when you reach a moment where you have to die for someone, you decide without hesitation to do it."
Bong-gu murmured.
"I see... so that's love..."
He then turned to Devard.
"Devard-nim, what is love?"
"A good hobby, I suppose."
"Love is a good hobby?"
"Best way to kill time."
Next, he asked Seol.
"Seol-ah, what is love?"
Seol answered.
"Love is when Appa says my hair is pretty when he braids it, so I always want him to braid it every day."
"Really...?"
"And the clothes Appa says are cute? I only wanna wear those, and I get sad when I can't. That's love, I think."
Finally, he asked Kang-jun.
"Hyung-nim, what is love?"
Kang-jun answered seriously.
"Wanting to die for someone is love, but so is wanting to live with them."
He looked at Seol.
"A wish to protect them for a lifetime?"
Just then, Bong-gu muttered.
"Love is... profound..."
As his drunken head drooped—
"Huh?"
Bong-gu's phone suddenly buzzed violently.
Vrrrrrrrrr—!
It was the emergency alert for a Gate spawning nearby.
"Wait..."
Bong-gu checked the location on his screen.
- Location: Bangbae 1-dong residential area.
- Threat Level: Estimated A-rank or higher.
- Multiple civilians already absorbed. Risk of Gate instability. Await assembly before engagement.
Bong-gu's face paled.
"Wait, Bangbae 1-dong...?"
That was where the café—and the part-timer he liked—was located.
"I have to go..."
Muttering, Bong-gu channeled his mana to shake off the drunkenness.
"Just now... an A-rank or higher Gate spawned near the café..."
Kang-jun scratched his head.
"A-rank? That's not something you can handle alone."
Bong-gu nodded.
"Still... I have to go."
With that, Bong-gu headed for the Gate.
"Immortal. Something to say."
"What?"
"Did you feel it just now?"
Baal, who had hidden in the kitchen earlier, rushed out in a panic. Kang-jun answered flatly.
"Yeah."
They had sensed an overwhelming surge of demonic energy nearby.
It felt eerily similar to when Baal had been summoned.
The source was likely near the newly spawned Gate.
"Pil-sang."
Kang-jun stood up as well.
"Can you watch Seol for a bit?"
"Huh? Sure..."
"Thanks. Just for a little."
He then turned to Seol.
"Seol-ah, listen to Uncle, okay?"
"Appa go too...?"
"Uncle will play a fun game with you."
Pointing at the cash register, Kang-jun added.
"Wanna play with the calculator for real?"
"Whoa! Really? Yay!"
"Play as much as you want. I'll be back soon."
Then, to Jeong Pil-sang:
"Sorry about this, friend."
"Huh?"
"Endure the torment of eternity."
With that, Kang-jun glanced at Devard and Baal.
"Let's go."
"Wait, why's everyone suddenly leaving...?"
Jeong Pil-sang looked at Seol.
"Can I handle her alone...?"
As he muttered—
"Eight trillion is missing."
"What?"
"Eight trillion is missing."
Seol grinned and pointed at the restaurant's safe.
"Let's start the calculator game now."
The torment of eternal calculations had already begun.